


Your Orange Shirt

by voleuse



Category: Gilmore Girls
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2005-07-20
Updated: 2005-07-20
Packaged: 2017-10-04 11:50:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,191
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29689
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/voleuse/pseuds/voleuse
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p><em>I would rather look at you than all the portraits in the world</em>.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Your Orange Shirt

**Author's Note:**

> Post-S5. Title and summary adapted from Frank O'Hara's _Having a Coke With You_.

It's like Friday night dinner in reverse, these occasional lunches at the Dragonfly Inn with Rory.

Lorelai offers Rory more tea, and awkwardly stumbles over endearments that once came so casually.

She's not sure whether she should rant, attempt a dirty joke, or burst into tears.

When she's just at the point of throwing a tantrum, if only to get a _real_ response from Rory, Sookie stumbles out of the kitchen and to their table.

"You!" Sookie starts, grabbing both their wrists. "Listen! You won't believe!"

That's the most coherent part of her explanation, and all they get as she drags them into the kitchen, to the radio she has perched on the refrigerator like a heathen god.

The song sounds familiar, and not in the background-score-for-an-SUV-commercial familiar. Lorelai frowns, glances at Rory. "That isn't--"

"I think it's--"

The DJ interrupts both of them. _That was local band Hep Alien, playing their single--_

They drown out the rest of the announcement with their squeals, and for a second, it's like everything's back to normal.

*

 

When Lorelai gets back to town, she hits Luke's first, jonesing for news, coffee, and Luke, not necessarily in that order.

When she enters the diner, it's a madhouse. Someone's propped a stereo on one of the barstools, and people are packed, chattering loudly. There's no sign of Lane, but Zach and Brian are holding court.

Luke's has, apparently, become the unofficial Hep Alien celebration central.

Predictably, Lorelai finds Luke sulking in the supply closet. He's skulking next to the ketchup, poking at the cans like they've personally offended him.

"Hey, you." She plants a kiss on the side of his chin. "What are you doing in here? The party's outside."

"Exactly." He finally selects a victim, jams the can opener into its lid with spite.

"This is exciting." Gently, she takes the can opener away and grabs his wrist. "Lane's semi-famous now. You should be proud!"

"I _am_ proud." He reappropriates the can opener. "I'm just proud in here."

"Get used to it, babe." She pokes him in the shoulder. "Luke's is now, officially, Lane's stepping stone into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame."

"I'm thrilled. Hand me that funnel."

*

 

There is, of course, a festival. The problem with it, Lorelai discovers, is that most of the town has no idea what Hep Alien actually _is_. Instead of a celebration of all things rock and roll, decorations are swinging towards Area 51 as decorated by Gidget's slightly uncool spinster aunt. In tribute to the theme, she's wearing the brightest T-shirt she could find, a Day-Glo orange monstrosity, appropriately Bedazzled.

She skips down the stairs and poses for Luke. "Ta-da!"

"Why?" he asks, shielding his eyes from her fluorescent torso.

"What?" She twirls up to him, grabbing his arm when she wobbles in her toes. "Doesn't it _scream_ 'not of this world'?"

"It makes me want to scream." Luke squints. "Does that count?"

"Be nice." Lorelai affixes a pair of bobbly, fuzzy antenna to her head. "Maybe I'll let you take it off, later."

At that, he grins, puts a hand on her hip. "Why not now?" He bends his head to kiss her, but she jerks away.

"Uh-uh." She extricates herself from his grasp. "You are not getting out of this. We're going to the festival."

Luke groans. She smirks.

"Come on!" She pulls at his arm. "We're going to miss all the excitement!

Luke allows her to drag him to the door. "If I wasn't a very secure man--"

She spins around, plants a kiss on his lips, lingers longer than necessary for her point.

"Fine," he sighs. "Let's go."

*

 

There's a stage set up in the town square, but no sign of the band yet. Instead, there's a podium, Taylor, Miss Patty, and Kirk at a piano.

"I have a bad feeling about this," Luke mutters.

Emily's sitting up in front with Rory, her spine bending only when Rory turns to talk to her. Lorelai throws half a churro in their general direction, just on principle. Luke swats her hand down before they turn around.

Before Lorelai can grab the rest of her churro back from Luke, the familiar whine of feedback shrieks, and Taylor taps his microphone.

Luke slouches in his chair. "Kill me now."

Lorelai takes the opportunity to steal the rest of her churro back. She takes a bite out of it, then throws the remainder.

It hits Emily square on the back of the head. When she whirls around, Lorelai ducks.

Luke grabs her by the shoulders, guides her out of her chair. "You cannot be around people right now."

"But," Lorelai flails her arms toward the stage, "Miss Patty's about to do her tribute to rock and roll!"

Then she spots Emily, scanning the crowd with a frown on her face.

"On second thought, you're right." She lets Luke pull her all the way to the diner, pauses to curve her body against his. "I've been very, very bad."

Luke catches his breath, jerks the door open. "Inside."

She flutters her eyelashes.

He mumbles something under his breath. Catches her chin in his hand, kisses her until she can't breathe.

They make it upstairs.

Barely.

*

 

They miss the first, second, and third sets.

"This sucks," Lorelai says, trying to comb her hair tame with her fingers. "I wanted to hear them play."

"I didn't," Luke mutters, but there's a smile lurking at the corners of his mouth.

Lorelai rolls her eyes, smacks his elbow. "Maybe we'll catch the last set."

As they approach the square, however, a crash echoes across the lawn, and when they arrive, the audience is dispersing. The stage is empty, except for Brian, who's dragging equipment behind the curtain.

Lorelai catches Gypsy by the elbow as she passes. "What happened?"

Gypsy laughs. "It got too rock and roll. Glasses moshed across the stage and right into Lane."

"Brian?" Lorelai frowns. "But he plays the keyboard."

"Exactly," Gypsy replies.

"Is Lane okay?"

"Yeah, but one of her drumsticks snapped." Gypsy cranes her neck towards the food booths down the street. "I think they were lucky."

"Thanks," Lorelai says, and bids Gypsy goodbye, before turning to Luke, pouting. "No music."

"Yeah, it's a shame." The smile has evolved into a full-blown smirk. "I guess we should head back."

"Think again, mister!" She turns, opens her arms, as if to embrace the chaos of the street ahead of them. "We still haven't played UFO toss."

"You're kidding."

"And I heard a rumor about nachos with green cheese. And Pop Rocks!"

"I'm really not getting out of this, am I?"

"Nope." Lorelai wraps her arms around Luke's waist, grins up at him. "And you never will."

"I guess I can live with it." The grouchy expression disappears from Luke's face, and she can't name what replaces it. "As long as you're with me."

She blinks, then smiles. "Absolutely." She darts her lips against his. "You're stuck with me."

Luke takes her hands in his, then turns to face the carnival with a sigh.

"Then let's get this over with."

She squeezes his hands, and laughs. So does he.


End file.
